# Chapter 105
“Is it good?”
“Yeah.”
It was a brief answer, but Mo Eunje could feel that Tae Igyeol was genuinely enjoying it. Mo Eunje put one spoonful into Tae Igyeol’s mouth and then one into his own. Though it had cooled down from when it was freshly made at home, it seemed to taste even better, creating an illusion of enhanced flavor.
“…”
“…”
Then, sensing something strange, he raised his gaze and met eyes with Tae Igyeol. It wasn’t the first time they had asked for a bite from each other and fed each other with the same spoon when only one of them was eating something, but Tae Igyeol was looking at him with deepened eyes as if attaching meaning to this trivial action. During one-bite chances, they had shared not just spoons but even straws they sucked on, so it was absurd that he was acting like this over such a minor thing.
“Your eyes are inappropriate right now. Fix them before I stab you.”
“…Maybe it’s time you showed some caution.”
He strikes whenever he sees even the slightest opening. No, Tae Igyeol was the type to create openings where there were none. So he shouldn’t let his guard down just because they had called a truce.
“Should I go home?”
“Haa… I won’t do it again.”
“Just eat your food.”
He scooped up a generous amount of kimchi fried rice, put some pork belly on top, and fed it to him. He was glad he had added plenty of pork belly, perhaps even a bit too much. After giving Tae Igyeol a spoonful, Mo Eunje ate the chicken leg from the ginseng chicken soup.
But on the other hand, when he imagined sharing a spoon or straw with Ban Hajun or Gye Minho, he felt disgusted and nauseous. While he could comfortably feed anyone with tongs when grilling meat since saliva wouldn’t be involved, using the same spoon or straw was a different matter altogether. At most, he could share a cup with his friends if he had to be generous. Mo Eunje conveniently forgot that he had thoughtlessly used straws to drink from beverages that Ban Hajun and Gye Minho had been drinking from before, as if it was something from a past life, and thought only about what suited him.
Since this was their first meal of the day, he was hungry and unconsciously kept repeating the pattern of giving Tae Igyeol a bite of pork belly kimchi fried rice and then taking a bite himself. Moreover, when he topped it with tender meat from the well-cooked chicken leg, it was so delicious that he couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
He was truly confident in his dishes made with kimchi, such as kimchi fried rice, kimchi stew, kimchi soup, kimchi pancake, and braised kimchi. Since the kimchi he bought was already delicious, it was impossible for any dish made with it to taste bad.
“You’re eating well. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you eat this well. Actually, it’s been a while since we’ve eaten together at all.”
“…Wipe off the rice grain before you speak. You have one stuck to your face, how messy.”
Mo Eunje removed a rice grain stuck to the corner of Tae Igyeol’s mouth with his finger and put it in his own mouth. It wasn’t that Tae Igyeol was messy; it probably got stuck there while Mo Eunje was feeding him. Come to think of it, as Tae Igyeol said, it had been 11 days since they ate together. In just ten days, they had both become gaunt from the emotional distress they had suffered.
They completely emptied the kimchi fried rice that Mo Eunje had made by microwaving four instant rice packs, not leaving a single grain. From the ginseng chicken soup, Mo Eunje had only eaten the skin from the leg, wing, and body, so when the employee came to collect the dishes and saw the chicken with only the dry meat left, they asked if there had been a problem with the taste, which was embarrassing.
To aid digestion, they watched a movie together after drawing the blackout curtains in the reception room to create a cinema-like atmosphere. It was a road movie that had won Academy Awards in both the US and UK, about a nomad in modern society embarking on a journey and exploring life on the road. At the time when it was creating a buzz, they had only watched the Korean film that was nominated for the Academy Awards alongside it, so they were only seeing this now.
After the movie ended, Mo Eunje was momentarily lost in contemplation. He was too greedy to let everything go and leave, but it seemed like experiencing life on the road for a set period would be a great experience. Since it would be daunting alone, he vaguely thought it would be nice to do it with Tae Igyeol as he opened the curtains. Bright sunlight poured in strongly through the transparent window.
“I need to shower.”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. I bought a waterproof cover. I brought all your body products and even your robe.”
Mo Eunje took out one by one all the items he had diligently packed.
“What about my cologne?”
“Why would a hospitalized person need cologne? Just because this place is luxurious doesn’t mean it’s actually a hotel. Get your head straight. This is a hospital, and you’re an inpatient. Ha, seriously, asking for cologne of all things.”
He was so dumbfounded and incredulous that he couldn’t even let out a hollow laugh. He had heard that the ligament in his arm was strained and would be quite painful for a while, but seeing him ask for cologne made him reasonably suspicious about whether it was actually that painful.
Tae Igyeol called the nurse and explained the situation. Soon a nurse came, removed the needle connected to the IV, applied a waterproof band, and asked them to call again after the shower before leaving the room.
“Help me with the buttons.”
He could have unbuttoned it himself with his now-free left hand, but Tae Igyeol sat askew on the bed and made a shameless request. Many words lingered on the tip of Mo Eunje’s tongue, but having committed to providing the most sincere and devoted care, he pressed his lips, which were about to move, and approached. Standing between Tae Igyeol’s spread legs and reaching out his hands, he felt as if he were trapped, bound by something invisible.
“…”
“…”
It was the first time he felt awkward in the silence while being alone with Tae Igyeol. He concentrated to avoid fumbling and unbuttoned the patient gown one by one. Even as Tae Igyeol’s persistent gaze clung to him, he pretended not to notice and silently carried out his assigned duty. The chest and abs woven with fine muscles began to subtly show through the patient gown.
After all the buttons were undone, Tae Igyeol removed his left arm and extended his casted right to Mo Eunje. He first removed the cast hanger and carefully peeled off the patient gown from his right arm. When the upper garment was completely removed, a splendid body with no fat, tightly packed with lean muscles, was revealed. It was a perfect physique without a single flaw, admirable even from a man’s perspective.
How can a human body be like this…
As he put the waterproof cover over the casted arm, his mouth kept going dry due to the bare skin in his field of vision. He became increasingly concerned about whether he could successfully help Tae Igyeol with his shower.
“Draw some water in the bathtub for me.”
“Weren’t you just going to shower?”
He knew Tae Igyeol enjoyed half-body baths at home and even kept various bath products, but he was flustered as he hadn’t expected him to want to use the bathtub in the hospital. A shower would be quick, but a half-body bath takes time. That also meant he would have to keep looking at his nearly naked body with only a swimsuit on.
“I feel stiff, so I want to soak in water, even if just for a little while.”
“Ah…”
Mo Eunje threw a swimsuit at Tae Igyeol to put on and went to the bathroom. He first rinsed the bathtub with the shower and then started filling it with water, all while his mind wandered in a thousand directions. He worried whether he had volunteered to help with dubious intentions and was deeply concerned about how to navigate this obstacle. But he didn’t want to entrust the task of helping with the shower to someone else. A strange desire welled up, wanting no one else’s hands involved, at least for this.
Yet, he was anxious about leaving him alone in the bathtub, worried about what might happen to him during the half-body bath, and if he stayed with him, it would be awkward not knowing where to look with all that exposed skin. No matter how much he racked his brain, he couldn’t come up with a solution.
This was all because of Tae Igyeol. Because he had come to know his feelings, he couldn’t help but be conscious of them.
“Haa…”
They had gone to the beach several times on family trips, so it wasn’t like he had only seen him in swim shorts once or twice, and frankly, they had seen each other in just briefs countless times at home. Of course, Tae Igyeol usually wore a robe after showering, but he had seen him more than once or twice when changing clothes in the dressing room. Anyway, he reassured himself that it wasn’t a big deal, so there was no need to be sensitive or nervous about it.
“The water’s ready.”
He left the bathroom and went to the hospital room, only to find the swimsuit still thrown on the bed where Mo Eunje had tossed it. Tae Igyeol, still wearing the bottom part of the patient gown like before, stood up holding neatly folded underwear and a robe. Even though his legs weren’t injured, he was still a patient, so Mo Eunje supported him and took him to the bathroom. Watching Tae Igyeol naturally remove the bottom part of his patient gown in front of the bathtub, Mo Eunje urgently spoke up.
“Hey, I gave you a swimsuit. Why didn’t you put it on?”
“I’ll do it alone.”
“Huh? Can you manage? Don’t you need help?”
“Eunje.”
Tae Igyeol, who had removed the bottom of his patient gown and was wearing only black drawers, called his name in a serious voice while making eye contact. Mo Eunje blinked his big eyes, waiting for his next words.
“…If you touch me, I’ll get hard.”
“Huh? What will get hard?”
He heard the Korean words, but their meaning wasn’t properly registering. Only when he saw the intense desire filling Tae Igyeol’s eyes, which were staring directly at him, did he clearly understand the intention behind his words.
“Ah, this crazy bastard, seriously…”
Barely restraining his gaze from dropping downward, he glared at Tae Igyeol.
“I don’t mind, but if you’re okay with it, go ahead and help.”
“What do you mean ‘okay with it,’ you crazy bastard? Are you desperate to be cursed at? I can’t believe this. Wow, really…”
He lost his temper, turned around, and left, slamming the bathroom door so hard it made a loud bang. This time, he had been ambushed even though he hadn’t let his guard down. Judging by his hot earlobes and nape, it seemed summer had come early this year. He muttered curses while fanning himself with his hand, then turned on the air conditioner.
He had no idea what to do with that hopeless guy. Even with the air conditioner on, the burning heat wouldn’t go away.
